Making a mooring:
To do this properly requires judgment and practice. Nothing looks worse than to see a man make a bungle of getting a mooring. If he is familiar with his boat, there is no excuse for mismanaging the job. The first thing to learn is how far your boat will carry way when thrown into the wind. This you can find out only by observation and practice. Having discovered this, set a range on shore to use when coming to; one that will place you at about the right distance. A better plan is to calculate your distances by lengths of your boat. If your boat is thirty feet long, and will carry way for six lengths, luff up at a distance of 180 feet. Always, if you have good way on, go directly to leeward of the mooring. Luff with a long sweep, for if you put your helm over too quickly you will kill the boat’s way and fall short. If the wind is light, go to leeward and come to the buoy at an angle, with your sheets lighted up; then by trimming and spilling you can baby her up to the mooring. If a boat is coming with too much way on you can kill her speed by shoving the helm hard across, first one way and then the other. Take an afternoon off some day and practice picking up your mooring and you will soon have it down to a science.
AT ANCHOR, BLOCK ISLAND POND.